Numb
by stars are brighter
Summary: An unfortunate accident on the day of her mothers' death sends Haruhi's life into a downward spiral. Will she be able to get through it with the help of her friends, especially one person in particular? Or will the devastating effects scar her for life?
1. Chapter 1

**CHAPTER 1  
>I AM NUMB <strong>

Haruhi Fujioka had long since dubbed today – the day her mother had died – an unfortunate slip of nature. This morning, in her mind, was not even supposed to have been created, let alone left standing on the calendar as if it were taking enjoyment out of mocking her. She could have done without the looks her father kept giving as she sat down at their little table, scooping food into her mouth and trying to ignore him. Every twitch of his face sent a wave of depression over her head, threatening to drown her in its depths.

Haruhi sighed with relief when she had finished her breakfast, grabbing her book bag and running out the door before any words of condolences could be given by the neighbors or her own parent. If she could erase the feeling in the pit of her stomach – the feeling that something bad was going to happen – then she would have a long time ago. But every year this day came, mercilessly making her stick it out for twenty four hours.

_Twenty four hours. I've gotten through one third of it already, so surely I can make it for the rest, right? It can't be all that hard! _Haruhi thought to herself, pulling her lips up into a determined smile. Maybe she did feel a little like crying every time this day rolled around, but she wasn't about to start bawling in front of the Host Club. It would just give them a reason to pity her and she didn't want that in the slightest.

"Haru-chan!" Honey shouted immediately as the brunette walked in. He was practically jumping off the walls in excitement. "You want some cake!"

"Not right now, Honey-sempai. Thank you for the offer, though…" Haruhi answered quickly, forcing a grin in his direction. The small blond stopped to stare at her, his face drawn in a frown. Something was not right about the expression on the newest club members' face. Usually Haruhi's smiles were happy, resigned maybe, but still happy enough on most occasions. This grin she was giving him was not like her at all. No, it had an underlying factor to it that made him want to order it off her face.

Because… underneath it all, her eyes rejected any happiness. In fact, to Honey, they looked quite _sad _in comparison to other days he had seen her. Mori stopped behind his charge and frowned as well (though he was always frowning anyway). "You noticed it too, Mitsukuni?"

"Mhm. Not great! Maybe she needs some cupcakes instead of cake-"

"The problem has nothing to do with sweets," the voice of Kyoya jolted the two out of their thoughts. Turning, Mori only slightly lifted his eyebrows but didn't comment. Honey, however, was more of the jumpy and cute type, so he had no care about talking too much.

"What do you mean?" he asked, his big eyes becoming big with curiosity. "What's wrong with her, then?"

"Apparently, Haruhi's mother died on this day."

"_Died? _That's so sad! How did you know…?"

"Hm? Oh, I have my sources," Kyoya answered absently, waving away the question with his free hand since the other was holding a clipboard in a business-like fashion. He was staring at Haruhi's back, his eyes narrowed. "She was probably going to tell us sometime today. Or not. It is hard to predict her actions."

"Predicting whose actions?" Tamaki appeared as if out of nowhere, his blond hair every bit as light as Honey's. He leaned over Kyoya's shoulder to look at the clipboard. It had a few notes scribbled here and there, but the most prominent made his teeth clench.

"What… the…"

"Yes yes, idiot," Kyoya sighed. "Why not shout it to the whole world while you're standing there?"

"This… says…"

Kyoya gave him an exasperated look. "Haruhi's mother officially died on this day, _t-o-d-a-y. _Yes. It is what it looks like."

Before Tamaki could explode in outrage that Kyoya hadn't told him sooner, Honey's voice made them stop. "Let's do something fun!" he said. "We could visit her favorite place or… or _something! _It'll make her sad if we stay around here all day. Maybe we can go eat cake too-"

"Hmm… that sounds a lot like we're avoiding the problem here –" Kyoya started to say, but Tamaki interrupted with a flourish of his hand.

"Let's do it!"

**xXx**

The trip had started off well enough. Since Haruhi had expressed interest in going to the beach again like they had done a few months before, the Club decided that it was the best place to try out. So after explaining the situation to the twins (who, in turn, promised not to tell Haruhi that they knew) the boys made sure their friend was all ready for a great day at the ocean. Even though her smile still felt a little forced, they figured they were making the situation better anyway.

Unfortunately, Haruhi fell again.

This fall wasn't like the one before. In fact, everything started out normally from the beginning, working its way up to the point where you didn't feel as if it was a cursed ledge or anything. No, the twins had decided to play ball up there, stubbornly saying that it would be more of a challenge if there was a scary heights issue to deal with. So, with grins plastered to their face, they had dragged their female friend up and began the game.

The first few times, the ball was easy to catch. The twins were careful to direct it away from the edge – especially Kaoru, who had always been more cautious than his brother – and everything went fine for a while because of this. Unfortunately, this didn't last forever.

Looking back, Haruhi would see it as an accident on Hikaru's part. She would forcefully tell him that it hadn't been his fault, that the wind had carried the ball farther than was normal – and maybe all of that was true… but it didn't stop the consequences. Haruhi hadn't thought, she hadn't been _thinking _at all. In fact, her eyes hadn't been looking downwards; instead they had been searching out the ball in the air. She could vaguely hear Hikaru and Kaoru shouting at her to stop, to leave it be, but at that point the girls' body seemed to have a mind of its own.

Oh, she caught the ball alright. However, not before twisting to the side in the air and crashing nearer to the beach than before. Here, there were only a few small rocks and about chest length water. Unfortunately, these rocks were just big enough to make her gasp as she hit, back first. For a moment, everything was very still and she continued to feel her heart beating in her chest, pain filling her arms and legs for a split second before… nothing. Absolutely _nothing. _There wasn't a hint of pain, not one hint of what had just transpired. That wasn't what scared her and made her eyes widen in realization.

Haruhi Fujioka was numb. Painless, but numb, and not just in one part of her body either. The numbness snapped into her legs, dove its way through her hands and back muscles, and completely snapped off the switch of movement in every limb from her chest, downwards.

The worst part of it all was that she couldn't move. In any other situation, Haruhi wouldn't have panicked. She would have calmly buried her anxiety somewhere in her brain, vowing to come back to it later when her nerves weren't jumping around. Unfortunately, any other situation was not _this _situation. She was at a beach, in the water, and…

…drowning.

She tried to lift her face, but it was impossible. The voices of the twins seemed far off, too far to help. Mori and Honey were closer, but still not close enough. Tamaki was sleeping under a large umbrella, completely out and with no idea what was happening around him. But… there was one more person. He was right there, suddenly, helping her out of the water – grabbing her arms and pulling her foreword so she could cough and clear her lungs of the offending liquid. "Are you alright?" He asked with irritation in his voice. This little escapade had completely ruined his concentration. There were documents to write up, papers to sign, and so much _work _to do…

"I can't f-feel anything," Haruhi answered slowly, her voice shuddering. It was as though she were slipping into unconsciousness, and fast. Kyoya adjusted his glasses, completely caught off guard.

"What?"

"I said I can't… I… can't _feel anything." _

Behind his glasses, Haruhi could see his eyes narrow in that way that they did when he was frustrated with someone or something, or… nervous, maybe? She couldn't figure out the expressions hidden there, especially not while black spots were dancing in front of her vision. Moving to her side, Kyoya tried to help her stand up without a word, but she just fell back down into a sitting position again, with him holding her up. Kyoya pressed her shoulder with his finger. "Can you feel that?"

"N-no…"

"Ah," Kyoya said. He looked… worried, almost. This jolted Haruhi a bit, but she still felt as if she were slipping from reality. The twins were coming closer now and Honey and Mori stepped out to stand behind Kyoya. Tamaki was rubbing his eyes, but immediately ran over to squeeze through the group when he saw them all standing there. If there was any doubt in Haruhi's mind that Kyoya wasn't worried, then she definitely didn't have to fear about the others. Their eyes were wide with concern, especially Tamaki, who looked as if he were about to call an ambulance that second if they didn't say something.

"Can you feel this?" Kyouy asked again, moving to dig his fingernails into the bottom of her foot just a little. Not enough to hurt much, but enough that she would be able to feel it if she could.

"No!" Haruhi was getting more and more freaked out by the second. She was usually a very calm and collected person, but this was getting on her nerves and she felt very panicky indeed. "No, I can't! I can't feel it… and… do you guys see those black things too… or is it just me..?" Her voice was low and kind of out-of-this-world, as if she were only half awake at this point. Hikaru and Kaoru looked to eachother worriedly, and Mori's frown deepened.

Kyoya, as usual, wasted no time in getting the group together. "Mori and Honey," he said, using the nicknames given to the boys in his haste. "Bring her to the car. Tamaki, call the nearest hospital and tell them to meet us halfway – and _you two!" _The last couple words were directed at the twins. "I expect a full report on our way there. Now go!"

Everyone scrambled to do what they had been ordered. Even Tamaki, who's fingers were shaking, managed to dial the number and bark out the address to where they would meet the ambulance. From then on, everything was a blur for Haruhi. She felt herself being scooped up into Mori's arms, holding her tightly and securely, careful not to put too much pressure on her spine even if she couldn't feel it.

The girl slipped into and out of consciousness, unable to even lift her arms or legs to steady herself against the backseat. Honey, Mori, and the twins helped to keep her steady so that she wouldn't roll off. "Almost… there…" Kyoya muttered under his breath. Hikaru flinched, trying not to remember the fact that all this was because of his lousy throw.

**xXx**

**Yay! New story! Please R & R, okay? It really helps my muses when people review my stories (though I do love all of you favoriters too!). Thanks for reading, and keep checking back for more. The next chapter should be coming soon. **


	2. Chapter 2

**CHAPTER 2 **  
><strong>THOSE TWENTY FOUR HOURS<strong>

* * *

><p>Haruhi blinked, slowly opening her eyes groggily. Something seemed off… about this. Where was she? Certainly not at home. Had the Club played a cruel joke on her? She tried lifting her arm to tuck an annoying piece of hair behind her ear, but found that she couldn't. Pushing down her rising panic, Haruhi made herself take deep breaths before looking down at her hand. To her surprise, it wasn't held down by anyone or anything, but was lying in her lap, folded over top of the other. This surprise soon turned to shock and then crushing despair as she tried to move it again, only to fail a second time. She couldn't think, didn't know <em>where <em>in the world she was, and desperately wanted to see a familiar face in this sea of white. _White. Hospitals are white, aren't they? _She thought suddenly, her eyes widening.

_No. No, no, no! I can't handle this! Not without dad or the Club! Why am I here? What happened to me? _Haruhi had long since started associating hospitals with her deceased mother. She always held tightly to her father whenever they went to a checkup, and had refused to go if he or somebody else wasn't there with her. It was just what she had always done to keep herself from running out of the front doors.

But she couldn't run now. As she tried to lift her legs, Haruhi knew it was useless. Even though they weren't strapped down, she still couldn't seem to wiggle her toes, much less actually slide off the bed she sat in. As more disbelief and panic swelled in her chest, she suddenly heard voices outside her room. Was that…? Dad! It had to be her father. When he moved in front of the window, talking rapidly to a doctor, she could make out his wig and makeup perfectly. Oh yes, definitely him.

"Dad?" Haruhi asked quietly, wishing she could run to him. "Dad!"

He turned at her voice and gave her a happy smile, waving through the window at the same time that the doctor tried convincing him that now was 'not the time' to see his daughter. Haruhi moved her head (a little shocked that she could still do this) and glanced at the time. Midnight? He had driven here in the middle of the night to see her? She didn't expect anything less, but it still made the girl want to cry. Haruhi was so thankful to still have her father.

"Haruhi!" He said, grinning as he traipsed into the room with a bewildered doctor following behind him. "How are you doing, sweetie?"

"Dad," the girl said again, blinking back the moisture in her eyes. "I can't feel anything. It's so numb… what did I do to myself? Why am I even here?"

"About that-"

"Ma'am… umm, I mean, sir, you really need to leave," the doctor insisted. "It might give her an anxiety attack if you try to explain so soon after the accident."

_Accident? Anxiety? What the heck is going on? _"Don't leave me here!" Haruhi said, trying to regulate her breathing but only succeeding in making herself hyperventilate. She absolutely hated hospitals! "Please, don't leave. Tell me what happened!" _Am I going to die like mom did? _

"Don't worry, honey, everything is going to be just fine…"

"Stop that!" Haruhi insisted. "I… need… to know what happened… so I don't-"

"She's hyperventilating," the doctor said quickly, moving in between the father and daughter. "Heartbeat is out the roof, blood pressure is way over normal… we need to get her to calm down _right now." _

Before the girl had time to react, the doctor was taking out a syringe and shooting the medication into her arm. She couldn't feel it, so she barely registered what had just happened before slipping into unconsciousness once more. This time, however, it was welcome.

* * *

><p>Haruhi woke up again the next morning, wishing she could yank the IV out of her arm and walk out of the hospital that very minute. To her utter frustration, her legs and arms still wouldn't move. What was happening to her? Why was everything in her body still numb? Suddenly, she spotted two red heads snoring in the chairs next to her, their arms draped over each other as they leaned shoulder to shoulder.<p>

"Hikaru? Kaoru? What are you doing here…?" She muttered, still sleepy from the sedation. The both of them stirred, blinking open their eyes and turning to face Haruhi. They forced smiles onto their faces, but the girl could tell that they were worried despite this.

"Haruhi!" Kaoru said, nudging his twin with his elbow. "Are you okay? Does anything hurt?"

Hikaru looked sheepish and guilty, which made Haruhi curious, but she didn't comment on his behavior. "No, nothing at all hurts actually. In fact everything feels very numb. Hikaru, why is that?" She deliberately targeted the older twin, her brow furrowing. He looked _very _uncomfortable under her sharp gaze.

"Huh? Oh… uh…" Hikaru reached to scratch an invisible spot on the back of his neck nervously. "Well, that's… umm… you… fell…"

"I fell? W-what do you-" she was cut off abruptly as memories of the day before flooded her mind. Horrible pain, but only for a few moments, she remembered. Hikaru looked even guiltier than before, staring soundlessly down at his shoes for a minute before nodding. Kaoru shifted from foot to foot awkwardly.

"Yeah, you fell…"

"Because of a… ball…"

"Yeah," Hikaru groaned suddenly. "It's my _fault. _Sorry, Haruhi… sorry."

"No-"

"Yes!" He was suddenly angry, and it made her flinch slightly at the harsh tone in his voice. The elder twin pursed his lips at the realization that he had shaken her, and balled his hands into fists before stomping out of the room. A few seconds later, Haruhi heard his foot collide with the wall and then his fists. Kaoru gave her a 'look' that clearly said he was frustrated with his twins' behavior. After Hikaru had winded himself and shouted at the doctors and nurses that had tried to get him to settle down, he walked back into the hospital room.

"Sorry."

"Hikaru…"

"Sorry, okay? It was all my fault and I can't take it back now. No one can take back the fact that you're _paralyzed!" _

The words were out of his mouth before he had time to take them back. Haruhi was shocked into silence. She had tried not to think about the numbness, figuring it must be something that the doctors had given her to cover up the pain of the injury on her back. But now… the truth was staring her right in the face and there was no way to run from it. Haruhi felt as though she wanted to run, though. Right out the doors of the hospital and never come back. She wanted to shout, rage, blame it on _someone, _but knowing that she wouldn't at the same time made her even more depressed.

"What?"

"I… Haruhi, I… I didn't…" Hikaru now realized his fallacy and was trying to take it back, but the words were slipping through his fingers. He looked up, and immediately wished he hadn't. Hikaru couldn't remember _ever _seeing Haruhi cry before, but tears were now streaming down her face.

"No…" her voice was shaky. "That… can't be…"

A sob broke through her calm exterior. She couldn't keep this up! Holding herself together was proving harder than the girl had thought. Hikaru inhaled sharply and took a step forward, pushing back the frustration he felt for himself and threading his fingers through hers. "Don't cry, Haruhi. Please-"

"I can't feel that!" the words burst from her lips in the form of a half sob/half cry. "I can't _feel it!" _

Desperate to stop the tears, Hikaru held up her hand in his, holding it tightly. "I'm holding your hand, see? You don't have to feel it! Just… just knowing that I'm holding it is better than nothing, right?"

The tears didn't stop though. In fact, they seemed to be coming more freely now. Kaoru shifted from foot to foot again, nudging his brother. The two had a silent conversation through eye contact for a moment before Hikaru reached over and laid his palm against her forehead with his free hand. "You can feel that, can't you?"

"Yeah, I can feel that," she answered, beginning to calm down a little. Kaoru wiped the tears off her face with a tissue, seeing as she couldn't do it herself, and Hikaru made sure to keep his hand against her face the whole time.

"Where's the rest of the Host Club?" Haruhi finally asked, trying to get her mind off of the current predicament. At that point, Tamaki burst through the door, walking hurriedly over to Haruhi's bed with an expression of worry and sleeplessness on his face. He had obviously not rested well that night.

"How are you doing, Haruhi?" he asked, wondering briefly what Hikaru's hand was doing on her forehead but dismissing it. Apparently it had made the girl feel better, so he dismissed it and figured that he'd let Hikaru do what he wanted as long as she wasn't crying her eyes out.

"I'm fine," she answered slowly, trying to keep the waver out of her voice. "Where is everyone?"

"On their way here as we speak. I just arrived early because Kyouya drove and picked me up on the way. Speaking of which… where the heck is he?" Tamaki looked around, as if expecting the dark haired male to pop out of the walls. After asking around, Tamaki found out that Kyouya was instructing the doctors on where to send the health care bill (he had offered to pay, but the rest of them had all stepped in as well), also explaining what had happened and the circumstances now.

Mori and Honey soon arrived, the small blond offering cake that he had brought along. Haruhi declined, saying she was full of hospital fluids (in reality, she was absolutely _starving, _but was way too proud at that second to let herself get fed by her friends).

Hikaru silently watched the group, finally taking his hand away from her forehead as all of them clustered around. Haruhi looked slightly disappointed, which confused him a little, but he shrugged it off. She was occupied with her other friends now, and the guilt that clawed at his heart was far from being taken away. In fact he figured that it would always be like this, every time he looked at her.

Kaoru furrowed his eyebrows when Hikaru stood, sticking his hands in his pockets and walking out of the hospital room without a word.

* * *

><p><strong>Oh noes! Poor Hikaru (and Haruhi, teehee). Please, <strong>_**please **_**R & R! It motivates me to no end! :)**


	3. Chapter 3

**CHAPTER 3  
>DON'T BE STUBBORN <strong>

* * *

><p>"Don't be so stubborn, Haruhi," Hikaru said, holding up the spoon that he had scooped some soup into in front of her mouth. "You have to eat someday, you know."<p>

"I'm not hungry," she answered. The girl was – to a certain extent – being quite honest. That morning the nurse had had to feed her, and Hikaru had stood awkwardly outside, peering in through the door and watching the whole thing. Now he had resolved to help her himself, but having her injured pride knocked on this way was not doing any favors for her stomach. "Please, Hikaru… I'm just not hungry."

"If you don't eat, then you'll die." He was being brutal for a reason. "You know, starve to death, or something. Now _eat." _

She resisted for a few more minutes, but with much cajoling, he finally was able to get her to take a few mouthfuls of soup. After that, however, she put her foot down – not in the literal sense, of course. "I'm not hungry!" Haruhi insisted, her temper on the verge of overflowing. "You don't have to be here. Everyone else went home. Except Kaoru… but he doesn't count."

Kaoru had passed out on the bench down the hall, leaving Hikaru to help her with dinner. What Haruhi really wanted was to take a shower, but she figured that wouldn't be happening until the nurses and doctors figured out how to get her to a bathtub without injuring her spine further. Apparently she was going to be here for a week or two at the minimum, maybe more if they decided to send her to a therapist. She didn't want that, though. Those places – or at least, the ones the doctors were thinking on sending her to – were for people whose parents didn't have time to take care of them during the day or something equally lonely.

Hikaru seemed to be able to sense her anxiety. He put the spoon back into the bowl of soup and moved slightly so that he was in her line of sight. "Hey, what's wrong?"

"Huh? Nothing!" she answered quickly – _too quickly. _Her smile was so forced it almost made him want to grimace.

"Come on, just tell me," he urged. "It can't hurt."

"I don't want to have to quit the Host Club. It's… fun… and you guys have been like my family, and… and I-"

"What makes you think we're going to let you quit?" he asked, his expression something between desperation and stubbornness (much like Haruhi's during dinner). "You can't quit, it doesn't work that way! Just because you had an accident doesn't mean…"

"Don't you get it?" she asked quietly, fighting back tears again. "They won't keep me at the school if I can't even hold a pencil by myself. My grades will slip and I'll have to go one of those special education classes where everyone learns the alphabet over again and stays there until someone thinks their ready for the real world. If I'm lucky then I might get a therapist that doesn't ask for much pay and if I'm not – which, considering the circumstances, I'd say my luck isn't good – then there's a high chance I'll die young because of another accident that'll happen _because _of this accident!"

Hikaru was shocked into silence, his eyes wide as he listened to the girl ramble on and on, not even commenting as tears broke through and slid down her cheeks. "Haruhi… I won't let that happen!"

Those last five words were enough to make her look up at him with surprise. "What?"

"The first problem is your education, right? Kyouya has some contacts that are pretty high up in the school system. I'm pretty sure Tamaki's father owns a share in it anyway, and my parents usually put money into the programs they run yearly. So that's not a problem. If you want to stay, you can stay, even if you _can't _hold a pencil."

She blinked. Hikaru usually seemed pretty high strung and – on occasion – dense, so she was pretty shocked to see how much he was thinking this out. "The second problem is a therapist, right?"

Haruhi nodded.

"That's easy. The club will pay any price, obviously. Whoever it is can come to your house or wherever you're staying so that you don't have to go anywhere if you don't want to. Finally, the last problem… is _who _you're going to be staying with. Since your dad doesn't have enough time to take you to school in the morning with his job, and there won't be anyone to watch you. You can… stay with us. There's plenty of room at my house and… besides, there are maids there."

"Maids?" Hikaru asked, confused slightly.

"Yeah," he shifted, embarrassed. "Because, you know… the Host Club can't… change your clothes… and stuff…"

"Oh, right…" she answered, blushing. "That makes sense."

* * *

><p><strong>This chapter was short, but also vital to the plot line. So stay tuned, please! Also, R &amp; R! You know how much I love it. ;)<strong>


	4. Chapter 4

**CHAPTER 4  
>JUST WORK IT OUT <strong>

* * *

><p>It had been two weeks. Two long and arduous weeks since Haruhi was admitted into the hospital. The wound in her back had healed – not completely, but enough – and the twins had packed her some clothes and pajamas, along with all her bathroom supplies. It had been really awkward, but Hikaru and Kaoru had forced themselves to stuff every single thing into a plastic bag and haul it over to their home, where they dumped it in her new bathroom and asked the maids to set everything up. Then, without further ado, they had driven back to the hospital and watched as Haruhi was strapped into a wheelchair while the rest of the Club looked on.<p>

"Do they really have to do that?" Tamaki asked.

"She can't sit back on her own, moron," Kyoya answered unashamedly.

He still looked uncomfortable, but watched silently as the nurses instructed the Hitachiin twins on her care from now on. Tamaki was still not liking the idea that she was going to be staying with _those _two devils of all people. He would have offered first, but Hikaru had beat him to it. Kyoya was obviously sensing his best friends' jittery nerves, so he tried changing the subject in that calm and cool manner that he always used when discussing business.

"We're both going to be busy arranging the details so that she can stay in Ouran-"

"Yeah boss, don't get your boxers in a twist," the twins said at the same time, grinning from ear to ear. Together they were more destructive than when they were apart. The changes that came over their personalities were actually quite amazing. Kaoru would turn more level headed, while Hikaru didn't seem to know what to do with himself. Kyoya silently wondered how in the world they were going to fare after one of them was married. He suspected that Kaoru would be fine, probably even better off to be honest, but his brother was a different story.

"…remember to have someone massage her arms and legs in the morning and at night, or at any part of the day that you can. Haruhi has to keep her blood flowing. If you can feed her these pills and then give her clean bandages every day, then she should be fine. By the way, boys, it might be easy to forget that she's around if you get too engrossed in your studies or an activity, so make sure to-"

"Forget? That'll never happen," assured the twins. The nurse nodded, but looked slightly doubtful anyway despite their answer. She pressed a piece of paper into Hikaru's hands, pointing to it with one finger.

"Everything I just said is explained in full detail on there. Try not to lose it, and if you do, send for a copy immediately from the hospital. We can have another made in minutes, so it's no big deal. Just make sure to do what this says and nothing should go wrong."

The word 'should' was emphasized by the nurse, but Hikaru pretended not to notice. He stuffed the paper into his pocket without another word – much to the nurses' annoyance – and shrugged. The time to go had come, and he was carefully watching Haruhi, hoping she wouldn't slip out of the wheelchair even with the straps holding her there firmly. He didn't mind her staying at his house (apparently he didn't mind it a little _too _much, which made Tamaki slightly suspicious) and was eager to leave the building. They departed – Kyoya demonstrating his charm as he profoundly thanked the nurse for all the time she had spent on those two idiots. His demeanor changed as soon as they were out the door though, him saying that he knew of many other hospitals that would have take much better care of Haruhi. But, after all, what could one expect from something as lowly as 'commoners care'.

Haruhi seemed a little disgruntled at that statement, but chose not to argue with Kyoya. He could be very set in his ways and might frustrate her to no end if she brought up why he had to use the word 'commoner' as if it held some particularly disgusting meaning to it.

"Hikaru!" she shouted, choosing to smile at the eldest twin instead of frowning at Kyoya. "I wanted to thank you, but-"

"No problem," he quickly interrupted, failing to even turn toward her. In fact, the poor boy seemed to wilt under her appreciation. To him, giving her a place to stay was such a small thing and would never make up for the situation Haruhi found herself in. "It's no problem, really."

The doctors had told the Club before they left that there was a small chance that Haruhi might regain movement in her upper body with extensive therapy, but he said there was almost no hope at all for her lower half. The way he had spoken – as if it were trivial and he had more important things to deal with – made Hikaru want to punch the guy into the nearest wall. It was a good thing the other Host Club members had been there to cluster around him and make sure he stayed five feet away from the doctor at all times.

His mind snapped back to the present as Kaoru caught up with him. A friendly grin was on the younger twins' face as he walked shoulder to shoulder with his brother. "You okay?" Kaoru asked. "You seem a little…"

"I'm fine," Hikaru answered, gritting his teeth. "Besides, should you really be worrying about _me? _This list is like a mile long. I don't know what half the words on here even _are; _let alone how to carry out the instructions. What does, 'intrepid attitude likely to hinder' mean?"

"Uh…"

"Exactly."

"No, no," Kaoru said, waving his hands while laughing slightly. "I'm sure we can figure this out. Hmm… I think 'intrepid' is something between adventurous and fearless. So… 'adventurous attitude likely to hinder' would basically mean that she's going to hate sitting still and will probably make it hard for us to do stuff for her if she insists on trying to do it herself."

"But she can't even move!"

"Which makes it worse," answered the younger twin, nodding thoughtfully. "She'll want us to help her do the whole therapy thing, probably thinking it'll work for her and she'll regain movement. Haruhi isn't dumb enough to think that she'll get all her limbs working again in a short amount of time, but she's stubborn. You know that. Just look at how long it took for you to force some soup down her throat."

"So… basically we're just going to… uh…"

"Show her that she can rely on us. But don't talk about it too much around the boss. I think he might have an aneurism if he sees your hand against her face again."

Hikaru couldn't help the light red that spread across his face, and Kaoru watched his brothers' reaction curiously. Then, he grinned. "You _liked _it, didn't you?" He asked, about to open his mouth again and start the teasing. Hikaru elbowed him and scowled.

"I didn't! Well, maybe a little. But not… _that much." _

He stomped off before Kaoru could answer, feeling eve guiltier than he had before. Any small bit of comfort he gave her would still _never be enough. _

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><p><strong>Aww! *Pats Hikaru* R &amp; R PLEASE. PLEASE. PLEASE. <strong>


	5. Chapter 5

**CHAPTER 5.**  
><strong>Nerves<strong>

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><p>"Hikaru, if it really bothers you that much, you can always ask Kaoru to do it."<p>

"What? No way! I can totally do this…"

Haruhi sighed, wishing she could shift a little on the bed to prop herself up more. Alas, the accident had prevented her from everything besides minimal movement with her head. She had regained slight feeling around her neck, but the rest of her was utterly… numb. Ah, how she _wished _this numbness would leave her. If only she could get her own blood flowing by running or walking or even _crawling. _Anything would be better than this. She directed her attention toward Hikaru again.

It had been about three days since moving in with the twins. Three days in which she had had to rely on them and the maids for everything. It was just humiliating in some instances, especially _this. _'This' meaning every time her legs and arms had to be helped along with circulation. Kaoru and the maids had been doing it before – the younger twin brother seemed as if he enjoyed it, which kind of irked Haruhi a little – but Hikaru had finally said that he was going to start. For some reason he was nervous… and she wasn't sure why. He had always been very flirtatious and eccentric, but that was usually only when he was around his brother. Maybe the pair of them made some sort of exuberant 'team'. By himself, Hikaru was sort of awkward, like there was a piece missing to his usual excitement.

"Hikaru," she sighed. "If you're so uncomfortable-"

"It's not _that, _Haruhi," he said indignantly. There it was then, that mischievous smile that always set her on the edge and warned the girl that he was about to do something _totally _inappropriate to the situation. Sure enough, a moment later Hikaru was right up in her face. "I would _like _to get your blood flowing."

Just like that, he pulled back again, sitting on the edge of her bed and swinging his legs back and forth. He looked a lot like a pouting little kid now. "But wouldn't it be weird for you? Like… I don't know…"

"Honestly, Hikaru, I can't feel whatever you do so…" she paused, and then grimaced. "Which reminds me: I only need you to rub my arms and my legs. If you even _think _of doing anything else…"

A slight embarrassed blush spread across Hikaru's face. Haruhi's eyes narrowed for a moment, and then she let go of an exasperated sigh. "You were thinking about it, weren't you?"

"Eh! No, of course not!"

Cue eye roll from Haruhi. There was a long silence, until finally Hikaru shifted on the bed and decided to do her arm first. He took the girls' right hand in both of his and began to massage her fingers, running his palms up to her elbow and down again over and over again.

_I kind of… wish I could feel that, _Haruhi thought to herself. Hikaru was smiling now and talking to her, like he could make her feel nice with words instead. He told her about school and how the Host Club was doing, told her he hoped she could come soon, and told her all about the funny moments with Kaoru, Tamaki, Kyoya, Honey, and Mori. He reminded her that Kyoya would say that the incident at the beach was no excuse for slacking off and that she should come soon and start work again at the Club (though, Haruhi figured he was mostly telling her that because _he _wanted her back, not because Kyoya had said anything).

"Hey, I think my arms are good now… thanks…" she said, stopping him in his tracks.

"Huh? Oh, right."

Hikaru stopped with her arms and shifted again so that he was farther down, touching her ankle once with his finger as if it was giving off electric static. Finally, after much embarrassment, he started running his hands up and down, starting at the end of her toes and working his way up to her thighs. Haruhi was watching him like a hawk the entire time, making sure he kept that mischievous attitude down for this one.

_Well… this is awkward…_

"Hikaru-"

"AHH! Wait, what is it?"

Haruhi's eyes were trained on the window, and she seemed to be mulling something over. Hikaru followed her gaze, and realization clicked when he saw the fast approaching grayish black clouds. Thunder… it was coming and she had no way to run or hide in her condition.

"It'll be fine, Haruhi," he reassured her. The girl didn't look so confident in that, but she tried for a smile (it came out looking a lot like a grimace, but she did her best, darn it!). Hikaru seemed to buy it, so she relaxed a little. Having people worried about her would just make Haruhi stressed out… and yet…

…_those storm clouds kept coming closer every minute. _

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><p>Kaoru usually slept in a fetal position, like someone would roll over and smother him if he didn't (that 'someone' usually being Hikaru, who seemed to sleep like a maniac most of the time). The youngest twin wasn't a very deep sleeper – since he always expected calls from Tamaki and the other Host Club members at ungodly hours of the morning anyway – and… well, he didn't especially like thunder storms either.<p>

Hikaru wasn't asleep, though… he pretended to be. Kaoru sighed and rolled over, poking his 'older' brother on the shoulder. "Hey, you're worried, huh?"

"Yeah, maybe a little. Why the heck did I leave her in there all alone anyway? Remind me, will ya…?"

"She did say she could handle it, right? That it was no big-"

"-deal. Right. But that still-"

"-doesn't mean-"

"-that she's not afraid! I know, I know! So… I guess we should check up on her… but she's probably fine. Yeah, just fine…"

Apparently neither of them believed those words, so they jumped out of bed after pulling on some pajama pants and raced down to Haruhi's room. Slowly, they opened the door... and froze. What they saw wasn't surprising, but it was _very _uncomfortable and disconcerting at that. Usually, Haruhi would run and hide when there was a storm, so the twins had had an image of her under the table or cowering under the covers. They had forgotten all about her paralysis.

"Haru-"

The windows lit up with thunder and lightning, interrupting what Hikaru was about to say. A shriek riveted around the room from Haruhi. Her face was a deathly pale color, and she looked as if she might faint any moment. Tears streamed down her face in bucketfuls.

"Haruhi!" Both twins exclaimed, running to her bedside. Hikaru didn't hesitate in wrapping his arms around her and Kaoru leaned against her shoulder affectionately. The elder twin reached back toward the table sitting beside the bed and produced his headphones, gently settling them over Haruhi's ears. She was breathing way too heavily for his liking, and the whole 'ashen faced' thing was really freaking the boy out a little.

Hikaru turned up the volume on his music player and held her closer. "Don't cry…"

"H-Hikaru…!" She cried as another flash of thunder, louder than the last one, cracked nearby. The music was on the highest volume now, buts Haruhi was still afraid. Kaoru seemed to be at a loss and so did Hikaru. The older brother sighed and shifted so that he was sitting in front of Haruhi. He put his hands against her cheeks and looked directly into her eyes. Unintentionally, the words came out of both the twins' mouths at the same time.

"_Calm down." _

Even though she could barely hear them, she shut her eyes tight and tried to focus. _It isn't going to hurt me. It's just thunder… it's just… thunder… _

All three of them fell asleep like that. Kaoru, with his back squished up against her shoulder and his knees pulled up to his chest and Hikaru, with both arms squeezing Haruhi around the waist and his chin on the top of her head. She finally was able to get to sleep as well – though the elder boy felt her stir every now and then when the music would end and he would have to quickly start a new soundtrack before the thunder arose again.

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><p><strong>Updated! Sorry it took me a while. :( School is being terrible to me right now. But just a few more weeks until I get to go on vacation! Yay! Hope you like it. :)<br>**


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